Girl Next Door

12. The Beach

Chapter Twelve: The Beach.

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When the weekend comes around, I find myself round River's. I agreed to come to the beach with River, Oli, Lucas, Charlie and Marcus. I also invited Cara, even though she doesn't talk to me much. Cara, Oli, Lucas and I are all waiting round River's for Charlie and Marcus, who are late.

"I'm not waiting any longer, I'll take Ria," River says, before leading me out the house. We go to his car and I sit in the shotgun seat. River gets in the drivers side, before starting to drive.

"So, why did you invite Cara?" River asks, curiously.

"Because she wanted to come. She wants popularity, so she wanted to tag along with you lot to get more popular," I shrug, and River nods.

"Well I'm sure the others won't help her," River chuckles.

"Fair enough," I shrug, looking out the window. The familiar surroundings pass by, since I know this place like the back of my hand. We reach the beach, and get out the car.

"Let's go get a milkshake," River grins, before dragging me into the milkshake shop. I order two milkshakes, before we head back outside. I'm holding both of them, and River turns to face me.

"Can I have mine?" River asks, and I grin mischievously.

"Not until you say please," I reply, before running down the path, dodging various people. He should've said please. River chases after me, and eventually catches me by a wall. My back is against the wall, and I hold the milkshake above my head. River holds my arms up, leaning over to get the milkshake. I make the mistake of meeting his eyes, and it's like the whole world just freezes. River looks into my eyes, and his expression falters. His eyes glance down at my lips briefly, before back up to my eyes, his eyes darkening slightly in the centre. My breath catches in the back of my throat, and River swallows nervously. River leans in slowly, and I watch him closely. He's going to kiss me. Oh my God. Just as his lips brush against mine, a familiar voice is heard.

"Well, look at what I found," Oli smirks, and River closes his eyes, before stepping back away from me, taking his milkshake. Would he have kissed me? What would I have done if he had kissed me? Would I have kissed him back?

I shake my head clear of my thoughts, before following the others towards the beach. River doesn't speak to me for a while after, but Oli talks to me.

"So, you and River?" Oli smirks, and I narrow my eyes.

"No," I reply, and Oli chuckles.

"Why was he about to kiss you then?" Oli questions, smirking.

"I don't know, to add to that game you play, I don't know. He's a player, I'm probably just next on his list," I shrug, though I hope that what I said isn't true.

"Nah, he wouldn't play you," Oli says, shrugging.

"Right," I reply, rolling my eyes. We reach the water, and we set out our towels on the sand. They all change into their swimming stuff, and I sit down on my towel.

I look around at them all and sigh. Cara has the perfect body, not underweight, not overweight, she has a good figure. It's no wonder she gets all the guys. Because she has a perfect body. The boys too, they've all got bodies that any guy would dream of.

"Are you coming in?" River asks me, speaking to me for the first time since our almost kiss. I don't know, he probably was never going to kiss me anyway, I'm just overthinking.

"Maybe later," I shrug, and River frowns, before nodding. They all go into the water, and I sigh. I couldn't even wear shorts today, I'm wearing black jogging bottoms and a large jumper. I search through my bag, and take out some of the anxiety pills. I take one, before drinking some of the water I brought with me. Then I take out my headphones and a reading book, losing myself in my own little world.

After finishing the book (which doesn't take long since I've read Alice In Wonderland about a thousand times), I stand up and slip on my sandals. I send River a text saying that I've gone for a walk, before starting to walk along the sandy beach.

The sea splashes lightly against my feet, as I walk along the beach, heading towards nowhere in particular. The sun is shining brightly, the sky is clear, cloudless, and it's pretty hot. It's one of the nicest days we've had this summer. I walk quite far along, until I'm pretty far away from where we were before, before I turn back. I can't see where we were sat, and it takes a while before I do. They're all out the water now, lying on their towels. I walk over and sit down on my towel.

"You missed going in the water," Cara says.

"I'm not bothered, I wasn't feeling it," I shrug, and Cara nods.

"Aren't you hot?" Oli asks, looking at my jogging bottoms and hoodie, I look like I'm going out in the winter.

"No, I'm fine," I reply, and Oli frowns, but shrugs.

"She's just trying to get attention," Cara mutters, and I frown, hating her for that moment.

"What else do you think I did for attention?" I ask, irritated that not even my so-called best friend understands.

"The stairs incident, the arguments, the starving, the suicidal attempts, every last bit," Cara says, coldly.

"I'll explain them, if you like. The stairs incident, that was just a bad night. He was drunk, we had an argument, I was pushed. The arguments, I didn't want them. Why would I choose to argue with someone I loved? The starving - I was fat, I still am I guess, I wanted to lose weight, and that was one way. I didn't mean to starve myself, I just wanted to be that perfect girl for him, but then he left. The suicidal attempts, the way out of a nightmare," I say, before picking up my stuff and walking away. So much for a fun day out. I run down the sand to the path, and start running home, forgetting about the world.

~*~

Aloha guys, so I think this book will have about 30-35 chapters, so not too long. Thank you for reading, and don't forget to vote and comment! Love, A xxx